Paralyzed by COVID impact

The whole world is paralyzed by the new coronavirus. People dying, economy collapsing. Science and research are seeking a vaccine, testing existing drugs, including experimental ones. The governments are doing the same. No one knows the recipe, but it could be a mistake not to try.

In my country has been declared emergency state. Schools, restaurants, sports facilities, most shops and services are closed. We are obliged to wear facial mask of any kind, groups of more than two people are prohibited, except the family. It’s strictly recommended to go only to work – if you still have one, and then stay at home. What else? Watch TV full of depressing news, empty interviews and other restrictions?

No, that’s not entirely true. You can see a lot of positive things as well. Nameless heroes among medical and rescue staff, food and drugs suppliers, who face the risk of infection every hour, every day. There’s also admirable army of volunteers. Thousands of people sew facial masks for themselves as well as for medical professionals. Many help in many different ways. Innovators convert diving masks to respirators or print them on 3D printers. Others develop effective protection based on nanofibers.

I’m grateful to see and feel so much humanity and good hearts. It brings me the hope to overcome the impact of the new coronavirus and enter a new yet unknown era.

Take care of yourself and your family, stay healthy.

Love, Ivana

P.S. Forced to spend a lot of time at home, I finally decided to face my fear of wet techniques. The image above belongs to my very first attempts in watercolor. It looks like painted by a schoolchild and that’s how I really felt. Please be benevolent, I keep trying.

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Playing with the Elements, Part 4 – Earth

Earth is the result of all previous elements. It is a solid mass with internal structure and growing potential. Even if it’s cold on the surface, there is always a hot core inside. Like the planet and its hot magma.

Meeting rules, discipline and responsibility usually means meeting the cold surface of the Earth. We don’t like them, trying to get fruits of results even without them. Or we tend to take too much discipline and responsibility, trying to improve what is natural. In the first case, you see the effort to jump directly into the hot core without protective suit and suitable skills, while in the second case you see the effort to wear too thick protection that prevents access to heat. And the most important lesson of the Earth element is to learn how to balance it.

Growth belongs to the Earth for sure. Depending on the project, the growth can be microscopic or giant. Viability of the Earth is measured by growth not by the result in absolute value. So don’t be hungry for too much, the healthy growth must be reasonable.

The first and necessary condition for the growth is the roots. We easily understand if we talk about plants. But talking about the roots of us, we need to consider our own history on personal, family and/ or national level. Before we change anything, we need to accept our origins without hesitation. Then our roots are healthy and we can get a bigger harvest with less effort.

Harvest is the golden point of the Earth element. And it doesn’t matter if you want to harvest grain, money, children or houses. Always you need to follow specific rules and invest each of previous elements. And because we are all unique, there is no exact recipe how to proceed and how much to add. We have to try and learn from our own mistakes.

Talking about the harvest, there is another important lesson. Do not eat the whole crop and always save a part of it as a seed. Taking care about seeds is the promise of future harvest. And that’s why the protection of women and children is important.

So, how the element cycle works? First, we need a flame of interest and feed it with wood and oxygen, and later build a shelter for it.  Oxygen means Air and Air means thinking, moving and socializing. At this stage, we feed the original interest with information, share it with other people and flexibly adjust it. The warning point – don’t lose the origin because of too many influences. If you decide to give up, return and find another flame of interest. But be sure it is your flame and no one else.

Once you have your own flame with enough oxygen, let it bubble into the water. Water means emotions, dreams, intuition and time. Don’t hurry, let your heart and inner voice comment and slowly adjust. Don’t forget that water is lazy and quiet. You cannot listen while loudly thinking. Water often speaks through images or music, so don’t expect the same language like from the mind. Be alone with your project for a while. Let it sit and be sure on the level of water before you continue.

Then recheck that your original flame of interest is still alive, keep feeding it by appropriate amount of oxygen, and keep honesty of your emotions about it.

Pour this blend to the potential of your roots, and with regular work and patience you should harvest enough. Most of the harvest is for eating and living, you deserve to celebrate the success. Never skip the celebration! And part of the harvest is the wood and shelter for another flame of your interest. It is the seed for future.

And this is how the cycle works. Once you understand the steps and the order of them, you can apply it to anything in your life.

I would appreciate your questions or comments.

With love,

Ivana

In case you missed Playing with the Elements, Part 3 – WaterPlaying with the Elements, Part 2 – AirPlaying with the Elements, Part 1 – Fire